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Aditi Mittal recalls how an Air India flight attendant helped her cope with her father’s death: ‘Preeti was a better therapist than most ones I’ve come across’

Mittal said it must have been clear from her face that she was in distress, as the flight attendant kept checking on her and offering her drinks to make her feel more comfortable.

At the end of the video, Mittal sent out a heartfelt Diwali message to Preeti

Stand-up comedian Aditi Mittal recently shared a moving memory that has struck an emotional chord online — about an Air India flight attendant who showed her rare kindness during one of the darkest moments of her life.

In a heartfelt Instagram video, Mittal recounted meeting a flight attendant named Preeti in 2017, shortly after she learned that her father had passed away suddenly while she was performing in London. Grief-stricken, she boarded the next flight home to Mumbai.

Mittal said it must have been evident from her face that she was in distress, as the flight attendant kept checking on her and offering her drinks to make her feel comfortable. “I was just sitting there, sipping and sobbing,” she recalled with a sad smile.

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After a while, Preeti gently asked, “Is there something you can share with me? If it makes your heart feel lighter…” That small act of empathy opened the floodgates. Mittal told her she was flying home because her father had died. Preeti’s response stayed with her forever: “How about this. Every time I pass by, you tell me one funny story about him.”

That suggestion transformed the flight into something unexpectedly healing. Mittal began writing down funny memories about her father, eager to share one every time Preeti walked past. “Now, I have a written repository of some of my dad’s goofiest moments,” she said, adding that remembering those moments still helps her smile through the grief.

At the end of the video, Mittal sent out a heartfelt message to the woman who unknowingly helped her heal: “Preeti, wherever you are, Happy Diwali bro.”

Watch the video:

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A post shared by Aditi Mittal (@addymitzy)

The post has touched thousands, with many praising the flight attendant’s empathy. A user wrote, “Kudos to Preeti!! We need more Preetis in this world. This post brought back so many emotions as I too went through a very long flight and journey from Connecticut to Mysore when my father (Aditya’s grandfather) passed away shockingly unexpectedly in his sleep. It was a profoundly sad flight to take all by myself for nearly 30 hours.”

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Another user wrote, “Preeti was a better therapist than most ones I’ve come across.” A third person commented, “Preethi literally translates to love in Kannada, I’m not sure if it’s the same in Hindi. But I’m happy you found a little bit of love in a hopeless place.”